To Forge Ahead
by FroschBite
Summary: Artemis goes against his duty to find the missing girls. Everything seems bleak until a fateful encounter happens.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Don't own any of the characters in Sailormoon, all belong to Naoko Takeuchi

In the dead of night, with the dim sparkle of starlight, two small figures loomed over a young girl softly snoring on her bed. Their fur had been disheveled and required much combing, but emotions rode too high to take the time.

"She's safe, thank goodness she's safe," sighed the darker cat with tears in her eyes. Her lighter companion tore his own eyes away.

"The others are gone..."

An eerie breeze floated outside as both could not find the words to alleviate the situation. The trees that rustled had turned back to their original color from the day before. Everything was back to normal, away from evil's rage. In order to protect the Earth from destruction, a price was paid and only the one before them came back.

"We have to make her remember, she had to have done something," begged Artemis. "Please Luna, it can't end like this!"

"Our duty is to protect Usagi, this is the same duty bestowed upon the Mars, Mercury, Jupiter and Venus. They understood the consequence of honoring Queen Serenity's request for her daughter to live as a normal girl."

Luna sat stoically, staring at her peaceful master blankly. The Silver Crystal was still in the transformation compact that currently sat on the dusty book shelf. It was the first normal day and Usagi had gone through it as if nothing was missing. Luna kept a watchful eye as the clumsy sweet girl interacted with her classmates and cried over another failed test. A devastated Artemis scoured through the government records to find that Ami Mizuno, Makoto Kino, Rei Hino and Minako Aino no longer existed in this world. He knew his priorities, completely understood them, but there had to be a way. They didn't deserve to be forgotten.

"I'm leaving," he whispered, fighting back his own tears. "I'll find a way, to get Minako and everyone back. They are out there somewhere and I'm going to get them back."

He jumped down from the open window and sprinted through the streets. Luna watched him as he appeared smaller and smaller away from her view. Her heartached at the image of the four girls in her mind. As individuals, they did not deserve any less than Usagi. They were reborn into duty, the same way herself and Artemis had. Never once did the girls pull away from what was expected of them. Still, they were so young. Groggy with her thoughts and heavy with burden, she placed herself at the foot of the bed, going into a troubled sleep.

It had been several months since Artemis had made his vow to Luna. Hungrily peering from under a green dumpster, he could only think about the silly blonde girl that he started his journey with. From a young thirteen year old Sailor V to a mature seventeen year old Sailor Venus, she was the leader of the four scouts and the closest friend he had. Minako would have never given up on him, nor would he give up on her.

Deciding to ignore his stomach, he came out of the darkness and into the afternoon sunlight. His normally flawless white fur had turned grey with dirt and his ribs were starting to show. Food came in scraps that he could find from trash and much of the time, he had to fight other stray felines. There hadn't been any leads to his investigation and each day grew more bleak. While the arcade still held their data, it stated that the girls were nowhere in the known universe. Still, he had to keep moving, even if it did seem hopeless.

Stumbling through the unfamiliar neighborhood, Artemis watched teenage girls giggling and laughing with no care in the world. Reminiscing the days that his master did the same, his thought turned to what she would do. Minako would probably get him a haircut and a bath, making sure he was comfortable on his favorite spot on her bed. She would turn on the television to some sappy soap opera and daydream about the hunky male lead. Then, they would fall asleep only for her to awake in a panic for school. He chuckled under his breath, getting more and more wobbly in his step.

"Maybe I need some rest," he thought as his eyes were closing together more. "Just a little more sleep before I continue."

Collapsing to the side, his body relaxed. He thought about his love Luna and how his carelessness would cost her. She probably waited everyday, outside her window, wondering when he would come back. There were times he wanted to go back to the Tsukino residence, to see Luna's scarlet eyes light up with happiness. However, he knew that he would never have been truly happy until the others were found. Still, if he could just snuggle with her one last time against her soft fur that smelled like takoyaki.

Takoyaki?

Summoning his strength, Artemis opened his eyes to see a young man kneeling on the floor with a ball of takoyaki in front of him. Artemis crawled over to the steaming ball and gingerly started chewing it, savoring the slightly sour salty snack. When was the last time he had a warm meal? After finishing, he looked up to meet the eyes of his savior. His own eyes widened as he was hit with a pang of dejavu.

The young man stroked the cheek of the dirty grey cat. The poor thing clearly had not eaten for quite some time. It crossed his mind that it wasn't safe to pet a stray cat like that, with the possibility of fleas and other diseases. Still, underneath his steel eyes, he had a soft heart and couldn't just leave the poor thing alone. He took the last takoyaki ball from his paper plate and stuck it on the floor. The cat continued to nibble slowly without taking his eyes away from him. Stroking the cat's head, he noted the cat's odd moon shaped birth mark.

Artemis purred softly. It had been a long time since he had felt affection and kindness of any sort. His body felt so content with fullness as he looked to face the kind human in front of him. Eyes that appeared like metal but reflected depth, tall, wide shoulders, and hair so light it shown silver. Could it be? Was luck finally on his side? As the young man gently picked him up and into his arms, Artemis felt safe for the first time. Falling into a comfortable sleep, Artemis' heart filled with hope that he was on the right track.


	2. Chapter 2

The rest of the evening was hazy for Artemis. Once he arrived "home", he was whisked away by an older woman who appeared to be the man's mother. Her hazel eyes grew big with worry as her hands carefully picked at Artemis' body. She automatically chastised Kado for not coming by sooner and drew a flea bath in a wash tub. Normally Artemis would have given a fight if anyone put him anywhere near a bath. However, as her hands gently scrubbed and poured warm water from his neck down, Artemis felt like he was in heaven. If Minako found out about this, she would likely kill him for the amount of times he scratched her for attempting to give him a bath.

After two bath water changes, he was finally clean again. Manami Yamauchi chuckled softly as she saw a life reborn. Artemis gave an affectionate nudge to her hand to which she returned with a finger rub to his cheek. He missed the simplicity of being a house cat. Still, once he fully recovered, he would continue his search.

Manami gingerly held Artemis and set him down while Kado presented him with a bowl of water and some fresh cat food.

"I didn't realize how white his coat would be,"stated the man to his mother.

His mother gently smacked him on the back of his head. "What were you thinking giving him takoyaki Kado? This poor thing looks like he hasn't eaten in ages and you probably gave him a stomach ache giving him fried food."

"Sorry mother, I wasn't sure how much he was going to trust me, the takoyaki was the only thing I had available,"replied Kado.

Artemis surveyed the general area as well as the two humans. Manami Yamauchi was mousy by comparison to Kado and if it wasn't for their interaction, it would have been difficult to confirm that they were part of the same family. With how much exasperation the tall man showed through her lectures, it was clear who wore the pants in the household.

"Just make sure he gets some rest when he's done eating,"sighed the veterinarian as she walked away.

Kado sat down next to Artemis and smiled. Damned if he brought an animal and damned if he didn't, his mother had taught him to be gentle to those smaller than him. Even though Kado got scratched up most of the time, he found it easier to get along with animals more than humans much of the time. They were less judgmental and cared more about the action of other species. Growing up, his appearance was unusual and scared off most people. His height was already far above average and his eyes always gave off the initial vibe that he was glaring.

As he grew older, he would assist his mother with animal care. Through the experiences, both joyful and tragic, he realized how much he wanted to continue on that path. It was then that by word of mouth, Kado was known as something other than an unusual looking boy. He even managed to make some close friends in the process.

"So cat, I wonder if you have a name," mused Kado. "I don't feel like your owner could have abandoned you."

Artemis grew full, walked over and sat in Kado's warm lap. Purring loudly as Kado's long fingers massaged his head, he grew sleepy again, dreaming of a long blonde hair, bright blue eyes and the most beautiful melodic laughter.

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It took a month for Artemis to fully recover with Kado keeping a very close eye on his care. Through that time, Artemis was given the name Yuki. He grew fond of his silver haired hero, greeting him in front of the clinic after Kado ended school. Everyday, he was given the proper vitamins, medicine and cat food. As bitter as the vitamins and medicine were, Artemis took them with no problem much to Kado's surprise. After homework was done, it was playtime with the occasional catnip. This would look like a standard time for a cat, except he didn't get much sleep at night.

From the very first night, Artemis would watch Kado shift in his bed sheets, murmuring words that he couldn't make out. On occasion, he would wake up in a cold sweat with labored breath. It wasn't until the second week when Artemis regained more strength that he would approach Kado. For the most part, Kado would smile warmly and stroke the cat's cheek before going back to sleep. That is, until one night, Kado lazily poked his forehead.

"What do you dream of Yuki?" Kado chuckled. "A nice mouse to catch? Maybe a girl cat you miss?"

Artemis' mind went to Luna and the guilt settled in. It had been so long since that day he left. The day he would reunite with Luna would possibly mean a second close death and tears. It would all be worth it. He missed her dearly, but no matter what, he had to keep searching.

"Do you ever think that dreams mean something?"

The white cat's head tilted to the side in curiosity.

"I keep dreaming, the same dream, I don't know anymore,"sighed Kado. "It isn't clear, but I feel different in it. Like I'm smarter, happier."

Artemis' ears flew up as he purred, hoping to get his human friend to say more.

"White pillars, exotic gardens, and these people, they seem so close to me. Like brothers, and the one man who brought us all together, royalty. Then there's this girl, so far away, sparkling eyes, strong, level-minded, beautiful, flowing blonde hair..."

The cat eyes grew wide.

"Here I am, talking to a cat about weird fantasy dreams, I must be going crazy. Middle of the night, have school, tests, got better things to focus on..."rambled Kado as he fell back asleep.

Frantically, Artemis started patting Kado's face with his paw. He had to fall back asleep now? As he continually attempted to pull more information out of the human's mouth, he was met with a small shove in the face. Sighing in defeat, Artemis stared out to the full moon in search for an answer. If Kado was who he thought he was, Minako had to still be out there, as well as the others. While he silently snored, Artemis started to gently nibble the man's silver hair.

Notes: don't own Sailormoon, read and review, let me know what you think.


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